Falling in love with the Olympics, again and again

Opening ceremonies at the 2016 Rio Summer Games were full of color.

Every four years, many of us fall in love with the Summer Olympic Games.

Count me among them.

Last Friday, the athletes of the world representing 207 nations gathered in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil – the country for Carnival – for the Opening Ceremonies of the Summer Olympic Games. At times, it resembled a giant street party complete with samba, funk, passinho and maracatu. 

Vanderlei Cordeiro de Lima lit the
Olympic cauldron on Friday night.

It's time to fall in love, again.

The French educator Pierre de Coubertin, who was most responsible for the revival of the Modern Olympic Games in 1894, once said: "The most important thing in the Olympic Games is not winning but taking part; the essential thing in life is not conquering but fighting well."

While there's much focus in my country – the United States of America – on celebrated athletes such as the swimmer Michael Phelps, the basketball player Kevin Durant and the soccer (football to the rest of the Olympic world) player Carli Lloyd, to name just a few, I find just as much joy in rooting for the lesser-known Olympians – especially those from other countries who might have overcome an obstacle or hardship to be able to compete. For instance: 

• Swimmer Yusra Mardini, an 18-year-old Syrian refugee representing the Olympic Refugee Team, had to swim for her life just last summer when – on her journey to safety after fleeing her homeland – the boat she was in started to sink. Along with her sister, both trained swimmers, she jumped out and pushed the boat for three and a half hours until it safely reached the Greek island of Lesbos. "I want to represent all the refugees because I want to show everyone that, after the pain, after the storm, comes calm days." 

Mardini's personal story is remarkable and one we should all spend time learning more about. 

Jamaica's Toni-Ann Williams and her coach Justin Howell
enjoy a happy moment during the gymnastics competition.

• Closer to home, there's Toni-Ann Williams, 20, a young gymnast from the University of California, Berkeley, with dual U.S.-Jamaican citizenship, whom I've watched thrive collegiately the past two seasons. She was born in Maryland of Jamaican parents. Williams is Jamaica's lone representative in the women's gymnastics competition – in fact she is Jamaica's first gymnast in Olympic history – and the reason I woke up at 5:45 a.m. Pacific Time Sunday morning to watch a live video stream of her Olympic competition on my iPad.

I wouldn't have missed it for anything. 

With a score of 50.966 in the all-around qualification, Williams placed 54th, which wasn't high enough to advance to Tuesday's final competition. Still, it didn't diminish her Olympics enthusiasm. "I am very, very excited," she said afterward during an interview with a Jamaican journalist. "I'm happy to represent Jamaica. I gave it my all. Hopefully, my performance today can be a trailblazer for the kids to keep the program going in Jamaica."

Egypt fielded its first women's beach volleyball team in Rio.

• On Sunday, history was also made as Nada Meawad and Noaa Elghobashy became the first women's beach volleyball pair from Egypt to compete in the Olympics. They were easily recognized by their long pants and sleeves – compared to the standard bikini uniforms worn by most countries – and Elghobashy wears a hijab. She never gave it a thought. "I've worn the hijab for 10 years," said Elghobashy after competing on the Copacabana venue against Germany. "It doesn't keep me away from the things I love to do and beach volleyball is one of them." The Egyptian duo lost to Germany 21-12, 21-15.

As Herb Elliott, the Australian middle-distance runner who won a gold medal in the 1,500 meters at the 1960 Rome Olympics, once said: "It is the inspiration of the Olympic Games that drives people not only to compete but to improve, and to bring lasting spiritual and moral benefits to the athlete and inspiration to those lucky enough to witness the athletic dedication."

And that brings us to the story of Sarah Attar.

Sarah Attar marched in the Opening Ceremonies of the
2012 London Games representing Saudi Arabia.

Four years ago, an Olympic milestone was achieved at the 2012 London Games as the first woman track and field (athletics) athlete representing the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia competed. Sarah Attar, then 19, born in the United States of a Saudi father and an American mother and who bolds dual citizenship, ran last in her heat of the 800 meters.

A cross-country runner at Pepperdine University in Malibu, California, where she studied art, history and graphic design, the 5-foot-5-inch, 115-pound Attar finished her 800-meter heat in 2 minutes 44.95 seconds, about 41 seconds behind the first-place finisher. I remember watching her performance on TV. It brought tears of joy just to see her finish. It didn't matter that her time was the slowest of any 800-meter runner. 

Attar said she wanted to represent Saudi Arabia at the Olympics as a way of inspiring women. "This is such a huge honor and an amazing experience, just to be representing the women," said Attar after the conclusion of her race. "I know that this can make a huge difference."

Sarah Attar competed in London wearing a white hijab and
a black and green track suit that covered her arms and legs.

Attar competed while attired in a white hijab and a black and green track suit that covered her arms and legs. She received a standing ovation from many in the crow at Olympic Stadium as she crossed the finish line alone, well behind the others in her heat.

Fast forward to 2016. "A lot has changed since then," Attar said in an article she wrote for Marie Claire. "Oiselle, an athletic apparel company for women, sponsors me, and I am living and training full-time with an elite group of distance runners in Mammoth Lakes, California."

Now 23, Attar is back at the Olympic Games in Rio, once again representing Saudi Arabia, along with three other Saudi female athletes – all who train outside of the country due to government and religious restrictions placed upon females competing in sports. However, this time, Attar will compete in the Olympic marathon instead of the 800 meters, a distance (42195 kilometers / 26.219 miles) she feels she is better suited to run. Her personal best in the marathon is 3 hours 11 minutes 27 seconds, which she ran at the 2015 Chicago Marathon. The Olympic women's marathon will be run on August 14.

"The marathon is such a beautiful challenge,"
says Sarah Attar.

"The marathon is such a beautiful challenge and I am really diving into marathon training to see what I am capable of at this distance," Attar told Like the Wind magazine.

In a recent Washington Post feature, Attar's coach, Andrew Kastor, credited her with "the right amount of spirit and courage I see in most seasoned and mature marathon racers," and with eagerness as "a student of the sport, learning all she can from her mentors on the team."

In the same article, Attar said: "The Olympics was always what these amazing, elite athletes do, that I just watch on TV, and I observe, and then to be a part of it, where I never would have anticipated that in my life was just, like, so wild."

Sarah Attar will compete in the women's
marathon on Sunday.

More and more, Attar has begun to realize her place in history. 

"There is a whole generation of girls in Saudi Arabia who now have a female Olympic role model to look up to – that didn't exist before. 

"They'll grow up knowing that competing in the Olympics is a possibility, and that's what means the most to me," said Attar, in a recent Firstpost.com story. 

May the next two weeks be filled with friendship, respect, good sportsmanship and fair play. May it be a peaceful gathering of nations. May it be filled with many new stories to share in the years to come. 

After all, every Olympic athlete is a winner in our hearts.


Photos: Courtesy of Google images. 

Stephen Curry: MVP season is summed up in passionate 'thank you' speech to his teammates, family and fans

Stephen Curry / A unique combination of talent and humility.

Watching Stephen Curry win the NBA's Most Valuable Player Award this week -- the league's highest honor -- reminded me of the values of shooting, screening, cutting and passing he's shown throughout what has been a truly remarkable season. Curry, who stars for the Golden State Warriors, my hometown team, was the best player on basketball's best team.

Curry, the Warriors' first MVP since Wilt Chamberlain won in 1960, is a sharpshooting guard on a team that won a league-best 67 of 82 regular season games and is 5-1 in the playoffs so far. He is part of a very deep and very well-coached team, the marquee player that Golden State has built its team around.

Curry's memorable season statistics were dazzling and reflected his value to his team. He was sixth in the league in scoring (23.8 points per game), sixth in assists (7.7 per game ), third in three-point shooting (44.3 percent), first in free-throw shooting (91.4 percent), and fourth in steals (2.04 per game).

At a press conference in an Oakland, Calif. ballroom in front of about 500 friends, family and teammates on Monday, the diminutive (6-foot-3, 180 pounds) Curry shared the lessons that perseverance, faith and confidence played. He took the time to thank each of his teammates individually in his MVP speech and choked up when he talked about his father, former NBA guard Dell Curry, as his role model.

Among the words which Curry's Warrior teammates used to describe him: genuine. And Steve Kerr, his coach, called Curry a unique combination of talent and humility. "The way he carries himself, his demeanor," said Kerr.

Curry said he would donate his MVP prize car to the East Oakland Youth Development Center.

Among the highlights of Curry's speech, which focused on the importance of team:

"We’ll remember this year no matter how it finishes, really.  But we have a huge goal in mind this year, and we’ll be able to talk about it for years to come.

"Every time we think of this moment we’ll talk about it and moments that hopefully will happen in a couple of months, it will all mean so much to us. How much sacrifice we’ve put into it, how much work, just the consistency that it takes to get to where we are.  It takes all 14 guys.  You can’t have one bad apple in this equation, and we don’t.

"So we’re truly grateful.  I’m grateful to have this team behind me.  This is not possible without you guys.  I want everybody to get a fingerprint on that so I can remember who I rolled with during this year, and thank you from the bottom of my heart.

"All right.  I’ve been long‑winded, but this is the last part.  I’ve talked about faith, passion, and the drive with the guys that I’ve been around and the guys that surround me every single day.  But a part of that is having the will to succeed.  Knowing that you’ve put the work in and have the confidence to let it show.  What I tell people is be the best version of yourself in anything that you do.

"You don’t have to live anybody else’s story.  Sometimes people make it seem like you have to have certain prerequisites or a crazy life story in order to be successful in this world.  But the truth is you really don’t.  It doesn’t matter where you come from, what you have or don’t have, what you lack or what you have too much of, but all you need to have is faith in God, an undying passion for what you do and what you choose to do in this life, and a relentless drive and the will to do whatever it takes to be successful in whatever you put your mind to."

Finally, after nearly 40 minutes, Curry summed up his speech by sharing a bit of advice and wisdom from the heart:

"Make sure you live in the moment and work your butt off every single day, and I hope I inspire people all around the world to just be themselves, be humble, and be grateful for all the blessings in your life.  I’m truly honored to be your MVP this year.  Thank you very much."

Photo: Courtesy of Google Images. 

Jason Collins: Comfortable in his own identity and skin

Jason Collins in conversation at the Commonwealth Club /
"Now that I have this voice and platform, I want to speak out
for all of the of the gay athletes out there."

At 7-feet tall, Jason Collins easily stands out in a crowded room not only for his height but also for his skin color. Yet, it's his personality and intellect that draws your attention toward him.

Last year, Collins became the first openly gay active male athlete in major American professional sports when he came out in a highly publicized personal essay published in the May 6, 2013 issue of Sports Illustrated magazine.

"Depending on the situation," Collins laughs, "I'm not always the gay one. Sometimes, I'm just the tall one, or the black one. When I turn heads, is it because people know I'm gay, or is it because I'm a seven-foot-tall African-American man?"

Last week, speaking in front of an audience of nearly 600 young professionals at the Castro Theatre in San Francisco for the Commonwealth Club's InForumSF conversation series, Collins shared the stage with journalist Jose Antonio Vargas and spoke candidly for 75 minutes about his journey of self-discovery and self-acknowledgement, and how coming out of the closet in a machismo professional sport powered by super stars like LeBron James and Kobe Bryant has changed his life.

"I just spoke to a group of NBA rookies and I had to explain what LGBT (Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender) stood for." While some in the audience snickered at the ignorance of it all, it prompted Collins to speak up: "It's all about education and exposure. Some guys have had no education and exposure to the LGBT community."

After he came out in April 2013, Collins waited patiently for a phone call from an NBA team who was willing to take a chance on the 255-pound veteran center -- a consummate professional and veteran of six pro teams who's appeared in two NBA finals, and who just happened to be gay. Certainly, there was bound to be one team willing to take a chance on the free agent. Finally, the Brooklyn Nets contacted Collins last February and signed him to a contract for the back end of the 2013-14 season, where he averaged 1.1 points and 0.9 rebounds.

For much of his pro basketball career, Collins has worn number 34, the same number he wore in college. However, after being traded to Boston and later Washington, then signing with Brooklyn, he chose a different number. "I needed a jersey number to go with my new identity," Collins said. "I went with 98 for the year 1998: the year Matthew Shepard died and the year the Trevor Project was founded."

Despite the personal fulfillment he's achieved, Collins believes there's still a stigma of homophobia in the NBA. "I used to hear that kind of talk a lot in the locker room," he said. "Since I came out, I don't hear it at all. Of course, that might have something to do with it being a $25,000 fine now. I tell guys, you don't have to be politically correct -- you just have to find more creative ways of cutting each other down."

Collins says matter-of-factly, at least one unnamed player trash-talked him during a game after he came out. "Yeah, he's a knucklehead. My attitude about that is: I'm going to foul you. Hard."

While some have labeled the Stanford University graduate as the "big brother San Francisco never had," the polite and affable Collins admits that at times he still feels like the new kid in school, still getting comfortable with his new identity and celebrity. He credits a gay uncle for being his personal role model and said that he's garnered moral support from fellow Stanford alums like U.S. Rep. Joseph Kennedy III, who was his college roommate, and from Chelsea Clinton, the daughter of President Bill Clinton and Hillary Rodham Clinton, who was his classmate. He also gives props to prominent gay athletes like Martina Navratilova and Billie Jean King for being trailblazers as well as sharing their wisdom and advice with him.

Although he can laugh about it now, Collins confessed to the audience: "I didn't kiss a man until I was 34-years-old." On dating for the first time, he said: "Having my heart broken, something that most people go through for the first time in high school, didn't happen to me until I was 34. There was a lot of accelerated learning curve going on there. The Stanford student in me wants to say: 'Okay, we're going to master this.'"

Before he came out publicly, Collins had been in an eight-year relationship with fellow Stanford alumnus and former WNBA center Carolyn Moos. The two were engaged to be married, but Collins called off the wedding in 2009.

Looking back, Collins said coming out to his family was a positive experience filled with love and respect. He recalled his first conversation about being gay with somebody outside of his family circle happened when he told his long-time agent Arn Tellem. "I called my agent. Now, normally, when a player calls an agent after a trade, it's to fire him. But I said 'I've got something to tell you: I'm gay.' He said, 'Well, Jason, you can still play.'"

While there's still a competitive fire in him, Collins told the audience he's undecided about whether to play another season in the NBA. With a lucrative, multi-million dollar endorsement from Nike, Collins realizes he can be as much a positive impact off the court as on it by speaking out on issues like equality and education as well as sustainability and health and fitness. He has a positive story that's worth sharing with others.

"Now that I have this voice and platform, I want to speak out for all of the gay athletes out there," Collins said. Seemingly comfortable in his own identity and skin, Collins is reaching equality both on and off the court by becoming an ambassador for acceptance and peace. In April, Collins was featured on the cover of Time Magazine's "100 Most Influential People in the World."

Reflecting on his life as a professional basketball player, Collins said: "Thirteen years is a long career for an athlete. "I used to be able to jump and touch the top of the white square behind the hoop with ease. As the years go by, you watch your hand go lower and lower on that square. Father Time is undefeated against us all.

"I'm really grateful for my Stanford degree now. On the other hand, I can still dunk."

Editor's note: On November 19, Jason Collins announced his retirement from professional basketball after 13 seasons in the NBA.

Photograph of Jason Collins at the Commonwealth Club in San Francisco's Castro Theatre by Michael Dickens © 2014.